KDWP ISSUES MUSSEL SALVAGE ORDER FOR TORONTO RESERVOIR

Free salvage permit required; salvage allowed from Jan. 15-Feb. 15TOPKEA — Before leaving office Jan. 11, former Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks Secretary (KDWP) Mike Hayden issued a mussel salvage order for Toronto Reservoir due to low water conditions. The lake is currently 2.5 feet low, and many mussels have been stranded along the exposed banks of the reservoir. The order will be in force from Jan. 15 to Feb. 15.

To salvage mussels, people must apply for a free salvage permit from the KDWP Pratt Operations Office; phone 620-672-5911 and ask for the Fisheries Division. Only dead shells of mapleleaf, bleufer, threeridge, and three-horn wary-back mussels on the exposed banks of the reservoir may be collected. After collections are completed, individuals will be required to obtain a holding permit from their local natural resource officer. A commercial harvest permit will be required if they wish to later sell the shells.

A list of natural resource officers by county may be found in the 2011 Kansas Fishing Regulations Summary, available at the KDWP website, www.kdwp.state.ks.us, or wherever fishing licenses are sold.-30-